Block-trade

This is a new, year 2002, softbound, volume of 120 pages, loaded with over 200 very large, full color, sharp photos of every type of "funny face" item. It's a memory jogger, reminding you of stuff you've long forgotten. Descriptions of each item are very complete, and run the range from block heads, potato heads, magic whiskers to spud people and safety-oriented seventies and beyond. There's plenty of interesting text provided. It's completely indexed for easy location of items. An up to date price guide is included. A fun book to enjoy. Add it to your collectibles library.

Toys, always, had been played with then discarded. Now they have a shiny second life as nostalgic collectibles.

In the colorful, profusely illustrated FUNNY FACE, Mark Rich and Jeff Potocsnak take us through picture blocks, magnetic 'magic whiskers', interchangable pictures. Quite quickly, though, they get to the immortal Mr. Potato Head. And there they stay, exploring the phenomenon of plastic facial features stuck onto an actual vegtable.

There's much to see. Who remembers, for instance, that Mr. and Mrs Potato Head, products of the consumer culture of the 1950's, had cars, trailers, planes, boats, kitchen sets? Who would have guessed that their child would be all plastic and have human features?

The art, especially the original advertising (see the freckle-faced little girl on page 59) is a wonderful, somewhat unsettling look at a bygone time. The text is clever, tying the coming of Mr. PH in 1953 to the contemporary fascination with science fiction and space aliens. And pointing out that he was indisputably (and almost uniquely among then-contemporary toys) an adult.

Best of all, the book has the great good sense to quote me!

Easier to use than some of the other marble "standards." It is well organized and the values, based on the condition of the marble, are with the marbles. Some of the other books have you constantly flipping from back to front to find a value. The different types of antique handmade marbles are logically grouped for the most part and the machine made marbles are divided by manufacturer.There is even a section with examples from contemporary marble artists. My one complaint would be that there should be an index to make finding of the great many types of machine made marbles easier. Until something better comes along, I carry this with me to auctions, flea markets, antique shows or anywhere else I think there might be an opportunity to buy, sell or trade marbles.